News of squabbling between the country’s defense and interior ministers, calls for appointing a government with a new leadership, and rumors of a potential dissolution of parliament, have been making the rounds in social media platforms and mainstream news in the last few days.
With the political scenario in Kuwait slowly sliding into chaos, the National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem has said that he was informed by His Highness the Amir that the parliament would not be dissolved.
The Speaker added that the letter sent by Defense Minister Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah allegeding corruption in the Ministry of Defense during the tenure of former defense minister and current Minister of Interior Sheikh Khaled Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah, would be placed on the agenda of the Assembly’s next session for a possible debate.
In his letter to the prime minister, Sheikh Nasser alleged that KD240 million had been embezzled from the army fund during the period 2013 to 2016 when Sheikh Khaled was the defense minister. Finding the response from the prime minister unsatisfactory, Sheikh Nasser had then referred Sheikh Khaled and five top defense ministry officials to the public prosecution.
In his response to the allegations the interior minister categorically denied any involvement in the alleged embezzlement in the army fund, and accused Sheikh Nasser of attempting to reap political capital by making the allegations after the cabinet had resigned.
Since then, the Public Prosecutor’s Office has acknowledged receiving the complaint and said that it had forwarded the allegations to the special ministers’ tribunal for a trial. This means, the tribunal will now have to summon the interior minister and question him on the allegations.
Meanwhile, a number of lawmakers yesterday signed a motion calling to ask the state Audit Bureau and the Anti-Corruption Authority to investigate the letter of the defense minister. The Anti-Corruption Authority said yesterday it was ready to receive complaints against corruption.
The liberal Kuwait Democratic Forum has issued a call for comprehensive political reform and the formation of a new government based on a clear program. changes and that the formation of the next government must be based on a clear reform program. For its part, the Islamic Constitutional Movement has called for a comprehensive investigation by the judiciary and supervisory bodies.